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One of the greatest experiences of my life was attending an exclusive banquet for Charles Schulz at O'Gara's Bar and Grill in St. Paul, MN, on October 1, 1994. Above is a scan of the invitation.
Schulz was in his hometown of St. Paul on a "homecoming" tour and O'Gara's was chosen because the owner, Tim O'Gara, was a childhood friend of Schulz; both families lived in the apartments above the bar. Back then, part of what is now the bar was a barber shop where Schulz's father worked (the old barber shop is now part of the room where the banquet was held).
As I recall, in addition to Schulz, the guests also included Bill Melendez and Sergio Aragones. There were around 150 guests, including many local and regional cartoonists and fans like Dave Mruz, Reed Waller and
Heywulf (Ken Fletcher), and a Chicago contingent that included Jon McClenahan, from StarToons, Jim Engel and 
bullet crow.
I didn't get to meet Schulz, but I got to hear him talk at length about his life, his work, and his advice to artists, which boiled down to "work hard and be as creative as you can." It was a truly remarkable and memorable event.
Schulz was in his hometown of St. Paul on a "homecoming" tour and O'Gara's was chosen because the owner, Tim O'Gara, was a childhood friend of Schulz; both families lived in the apartments above the bar. Back then, part of what is now the bar was a barber shop where Schulz's father worked (the old barber shop is now part of the room where the banquet was held).
As I recall, in addition to Schulz, the guests also included Bill Melendez and Sergio Aragones. There were around 150 guests, including many local and regional cartoonists and fans like Dave Mruz, Reed Waller and
Heywulf (Ken Fletcher), and a Chicago contingent that included Jon McClenahan, from StarToons, Jim Engel and 
bullet crow.I didn't get to meet Schulz, but I got to hear him talk at length about his life, his work, and his advice to artists, which boiled down to "work hard and be as creative as you can." It was a truly remarkable and memorable event.
Category All / Comics
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 1024 x 768px
File Size 92 kB
Very similar to an event I got to attend in 1995 that featured Chuck Jones, by blind happenstance. While I was an unemployed, broke nobody at the time (and thus couldn't buy the cel art on sale - DAMN did I want that Rikki-Tikki-Tavi production cel) I did manage to spring for a signed copy of his autobiography...given to me by the Master himself. I also got to see his presentation. He drew freehand during the talk, drawings which were *very* quickly whisked off by the sponsoring institution - the (then) Academy of Arts and Sciences in Philadelphia.
Once in a lifetime. I'm damn glad I got to do it, and glad you got to see Sparky live and in person for the same reason.
And I still have that signed book. Hope that that becomes a family heirloom.
Once in a lifetime. I'm damn glad I got to do it, and glad you got to see Sparky live and in person for the same reason.
And I still have that signed book. Hope that that becomes a family heirloom.
Lucky you. My friends Matt, Bernard and I got to visit the Charles Schultz museum in Santa Rosa, CA, about two years after the famous cartoonist had passed on. There was a set up, replicating his personal work area just as he left it, which made me feel kind of sad in the knowing that those tolls would never be used again. We had a good time during our visit though. The cartoons on display and the little touches which showed off Mr. Schultz's sense of humor brightened up the experience, and I found it inspiring to be as close as four inches to a real Peabody award... Which was in a large, Plexiglass case of course.
I've known Chuck for years, though I haven't seen him in a while. He and Jim Engel used to show up a local comic and sci-fi conventions, which is where I first met him.
Fiala and Engel, among other things, created a special feature for The Comic Reader called "Fandom Confidential," where they took satiric jabs at comics artists, fans and the industry. You can see several examples of their column here: http://johnbyrnedraws.tumblr.com/po.....a-from-fandom.
Fiala and Engel, among other things, created a special feature for The Comic Reader called "Fandom Confidential," where they took satiric jabs at comics artists, fans and the industry. You can see several examples of their column here: http://johnbyrnedraws.tumblr.com/po.....a-from-fandom.
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